“Before a toy can be sold in the U.S., manufacturers will send their toys and the packaging to us. We’ll review the packaging and the age rating a manufacturer puts on a toy, and we’ll test toys to the applicable standard to make sure they’re safe to be sold,” Parzen says.

Toys are tested for lead and phthalates (a compound in plastic) to make sure they’re at or below permissible levels. NSF also puts toys through the paces by dropping, twisting, and pulling them, and throwing them down the stairs, just like a child might. They also test toys for sound, to make sure toys won’t damage ears, and for hazardous magnets, electrical hazards, and dangerous projectiles. The process takes five to seven business days. About 10 percent of all toys that NSF tests don’t pass inspection. Of the toys that make it, you’ll never know other than they’re on store shelves. You won’t see any certification mark. Accreditation by NSF or any other third-party certifier is blind to the consumer.

Bottomline: Toys sold in the U.S. since 2007 are safer because they’re third-party tested. Still, that doesn’t mean you’re off the hook. When you’re toy shopping, be sure to match a toy’s age grading with your child’s age. And later, when your child is playing with a toy, keep an eye on him or her. “Toys can be misused in ways that we can’t predict,” Parzen says, which can make any “safe” toy dangerous.

Share on Facebook

Share on Facebook

Don't use the flat-mat style sleep positioner

Finally, the FDA and the Consumer Product Safety Commission are putting a warning on sleep positioners, urging parents not to use them. For more info, see this statement issued September 29, 2010: http://www.cpsc.gov/onsafety/2010/09/sleep-positioners-a-suffocation-risk/.

A warning isn’t exactly a recall so that means that sleep positioners may still be on the market. But manufacturers of infant sleep positioners with medical claims (that the sleep positioners help prevent SIDS or GERD or positional plagiocephaly, flat head syndrome, for example) will need to stop making these products until they’ve been reviewed and cleared by the FDA.

Don't use the inclined-wedge style sleep positioner either. No style is safe.

Even sleep positioners that have been cleared have work to do. “FDA has informed manufacturers of cleared devices of the agency’s serious concern and has requested that they submit clinical data showing the benefits of their products outweigh the risk of suffocation or other serious harm.”

CPSC and the FDA are warning parents and child care providers to:

• STOP using sleep positioners. Using a positioner to hold an infant on his or her back or side for sleep is dangerous and unnecessary.
• NEVER put pillows, infant sleep positioners, comforters, or quilts under a baby or in a crib.
• ALWAYS place an infant on his or her back at night and during nap time. To reduce the risk of SIDS, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends placing infants to sleep on their backs and not their sides.

Over the past 13 years, CPSC and the FDA have received 12 reports of infants between the ages of 1 month and 4 four months who died when they suffocated in sleep positioners or became trapped and suffocated between a sleep positioner and the side of a crib or bassinet.

I don’t know about you but I’ll sleeping better knowing these products are now under scrutiny and fewer parents will be using them.

Share on Facebook

They’re on the rise among kids because lots of parents use household cleaning sprays and we forget to turn the nozzle to the off button, or even better, store the closed bottle in a locked cabinet out of a child’s reach. Maureen, a mom of two, reminds us how easily cleaning-spray accidents can happen. She writes:

“Today, I was busy dusting furniture when little Mack decided it was time for a diaper change. I put the dusting spray bottle down and brought him upstairs to take care of him. While I was out of sight, 2-year-old Evelyn took it upon herself to squirt the dusting solution into her mouth. Oh no!!”

Fortunately, Maureen’s dusting spray was a homemade concoction of vinegar, water, and olive oil she didn’t have to worry, or call the Poison Control Center (1-800-222-1222). But plenty of other parents like me who use commerical cleaning solutions aren’t always so lucky, especially considering that many cleaning products are blue, orange, purple, or yellow in color and look like juice or sports drinks to toddlers and preschoolers.

Preventing an accident only takes a minute, but it’s important to do every time you use a household cleaning spray. That is, turn the nozzle to the off button and store the solution in a locked cabinet out of your child’s reach (instead of under the kitchen sink–that’s not safe, even if you have a child-safety latch on it because determined toddlers may be able to override it). Your best storage solution is a high cabinet with a child-safety latch. Also, keep cleaning solutions in the original container. For more info, check out my AOL piece. September is National Baby Safety Month. For more child safety tips in general, visit http://www.jpma.org/bsm/2010/.

Share on Facebook

Amidst the recent rash of crib recalls–over 2 million cribs with top brand names such as LaJobi (Bona Vita, Babi Italia and ISSI), Simmons, Jardine, Delta (Jenny Lind) and Delta–were recalled on June 24, 2010–40,000 to 50,000 of them were stationary cribs by Childcraft. (The rest were drop-sided cribs.)

The stationary side on these Childcraft cribs can be assembled upside down, but look like they’re installed correctly, leaving a hazardous five-inch gap at the top of the crib. Infants or toddlers can become entrapped in this gap (see photo, below, of what the dangerous gap looks like), which can lead to entrapment, strangulation or other injuries.

These cribs were sold at Babies ‘R Us and other stores nationwide between January 1998 and June 2009 for between $600 and $650.

What to Do:

The remedy for this crib is to examine it immediately and determine whether you’ve assembled it properly. The Consumer Product Safety Commission says that the best way to do this is to measure the gap between the front and back sides of the crib and the dowel that runs parallel to the sides. The gap should be no more than two and three eighths inches (2 3/8″). If the gap is greater than 2 3/8″, the side has been installed upside-down and needs to be re-assembled. Another indicator that the side has been installed improperly is the appearance of the barrel nut. The barrel nut should be at the bottom of the side, not the top. If either of these conditions are present, the side of the crib has been installed upside-down and needs to be re-assembled so that the barrel nut is not visible from the top and the gap between the dowel and the side is no greater than two and three eighths inches (2 3/8″).

If you’ve installed this crib incorrectly, you should also contact Foundations Worldwide, Inc. toll-free at (866) 614-0557 anytime, or visit the firm’s website at www.cribsafetyinfo.com to obtain instructions and decals to affix to the stationary sides of the crib to ensure proper assembly in the future.

Share on Facebook

The answer is…unfortunately, no. There’s really nothing you can or should buy to essentially lock your child into his car seat. In fact, here’s the stance about aftermarket products like these that manufacturers, such as Britax, state on their Website:

Do not use any aftermarket products (e.g., mirrors, sun visors, toys attached to the seat, etc.), as they could affect the performance of the child seat in the event of a crash and could become dangerous projectiles in a collision.

And in this case, there may be an instance in which you need to get your child out of her car seat quickly. So, the best you can do for this problem is to engage your child by, for example, keeping special small, squishy toys in your car for your child to play with that are for the car only. Another distraction idea: One mom at the symposium recommended putting in a DVD. That sounds like a good idea if your car has a DVD system, but keep in mind that watching TV while riding counts towards your child’s screen time. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends limiting TV time to 1-2 hours of quality programming for kids age 2 and over: http://www.healthychildren.org/English/family-life/work-play/Media/pages/The-Benefits-of-Limiting-TV.aspx. I know first hand how addicting TV can be for kids. So I hesitate to actually recommend that strategy. I think putting a fun song in the CD player is better. You can also try to reason with kids this young and begin to state ground rules such as “I won’t drive the car until your car seat is buckled because that’s what we need to do to be safe.” Kids thrive on praise so a little, “Thank you for buckling your car seat like a big girl,” probably couldn’t hurt either.

When my kids were younger, we often pulled over in a safe spot until the car seat got buckled again. And sometimes, we had to sit and sit until finally, my daughter gave in, only to have to pull over again until the we heard the magic “click” of the buckle. It’s an exasperating time, but you’re not alone. Most every parent I know went through it.

Share on Facebook

babyproductsmom.com says:

If you like to run, like I do, it is tempting to try to use your regular stroller as a jogger. But you’re better off keeping the two–your baby and your run–separate. Or to get a jogging stroller in addition to your regular stroller. And even then, you’ll want to wait. In fact, because of the jarring nature of the ride, hold off on using a jogging stroller until your child is a year old, even if you’re just walking fast on rough terrain. And always secure your child in the stroller’s five-point safety harness and use the wrist strap. It keeps the stroller from getting away from you if you fall or trip while you’re running.

Share on Facebook

Share on Facebook

The Graco Snugride 35 is just one example of a car seat that allows kids to ride rear facing longer. It's for infants from 5 to 35 pounds and less than 32 inches tall.

You know to keep your baby riding rear facing in her infant or convertible car seat in the back seat until she’s at least a year old and weighs at least 20 pounds. But did you know there’s a movement a foot to keep infants and toddlers riding rear facing much longer than that? Many manufacturers of infant and convertible car seats are upping the weight limit in the rear-facing mode to 30 – 35 pounds. (Note: Infant car seats are only used rear-facing; they’re never used foward facing.) With the new upper weight limits on many car seats in the rear-facing mode, kids can conceivably ride backward until they’re 2 ½ to 3 years old, as long as they’re within the height and weight limits of the seat.

Statistics show that riding backward is safer. Kids are up to 75 percent less likely to be injured in a crash. But what do you think? Any downsides to riding this way longer? If your toddler was within the weight and height limits in the seat in the rear-facing mode, would you still be tempted to turn the seat around before she turns 2 1/2 or 3? Why? Just curious.

I look forward to your comments.

Share on Facebook

Share on Facebook